Let's celebrate our humanity worldwide

Bruce BensonTimes-News Columnist

Published: Saturday, May 11, 2013 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, May 10, 2013 at 2:07 p.m.

This was going to be a humorous column, as I made a recent trip back up Jeter Mountain to see my buddy Zeke. It's always fun up on Jeter Mountain. This time, Zeke's brother and neighbor Jebediah was there.

"He thinks he can travel through time," Zeke whispered to me once, as Jeb was speaking on the theory of evolution.

"I can," said Jeb, who overheard his brother. "Ever since I got glaucoma I can sit on my porch on my old rocking chair …" Here he paused to take some medicine for his condition. He struck a match, lit his pipe, inhaled deeply, coughed a little, held his breath, then exhaled the funny-smelling smoke.

Zeke took a snort of his jug in disgust.

"… And travel back and forth in time. Why, the things I could tell you …"

Jeb has regaled me with many tales of the past and future, tales I will relate later. But this column is an appeal for help. I need assistance with a project that is just too large to take on without the help of, eventually, millions of people.

Four years ago, I was hiking on the Appalachian Trail with my son, Tiberius. It was a coming-of-age trip for the 12-year-old boy (a coming-of-old-age trip for his father). As I watched him stomp up the mountain one morning, angry because "stupid dad" wouldn't let him sleep in, I got to wondering what kind of world he would inherit. A look at any newspaper or watching the news quickly shows how the world is screwed up in so many places and so many ways.

Hiking is conducive to thought, even for me, so I kept on thinking.

Yes, the world is screwed up in so many ways, but so many of the problems on our little blue dot are caused by our differences. And if you think about it, no matter a person's religion, or lack thereof; no matter a person's nationality, skin color or politics, these differences are nothing compared to what we have in common: We are human. We should have something to celebrate that fact, that commonality of being human. Why don't we?

That night I drew a template for a human flag, or Flag of Humanity. I can do some things well and some things poorly. Drawing falls into the latter category. My crude drawing was meant to represent an adult human passing the Earth to a child.

On my return to civilization, I took my stick-figure drawing to Design 1, a design team in Asheville, and four years later, with the help and advice of many others, the flag was finished. The final product is two sets of hands, child and adult, in silhouette to represent all the skin colors of people on Earth. The adult is handing the Earth to the child, who is reaching for it.

I ordered five flags made, and on my annual return trip to Canada where I work my summers as a commercial fisherman, I stopped in New York City and flew the flag in front of the United Nations building. Other than the flag representing the United Nations itself, the Flag of Humanity was the only flag flying that day.

The Flag of Humanity is unique in the world of flags. Every other flag on Earth represents, or celebrates, a difference: I am American, Canadian, Yugoslavian. I am a Rotarian, a Mason. I am from Henderson County. The Flag of Humanity represents all those things and more. It represents all of us, and so can be flown by every single person on Earth, no matter where, or what, or who they are.

I envision a world where children in one country can look at this flag flying over their nation, their town, their school, and know that other children in other countries, though they may have a different culture, language, religion and skin color, are looking at the same flag, celebrating the commonality of being human.

I made a small video about the flag. Search Youtube for The Flag of Humanity and you'll see my ugly mug. (Note: Two months after I posted it, four years after conception, someone else posted his own version of such a flag.)

I need help in promoting the Flag of Humanity. We can do it. In fact, I know we will. Jeb told me.

"It'll be all over the place, Bruce, don't worry about that. I've seen it flying over the pyramids of Egypt, the Eiffel Tower, Baghdad and the White House. It'll happen ... but you might not live to see it."

Jeb said that in the future, the raising of a flag to celebrate being human will become commonplace at everything from sporting events to international peace conferences. And he said it began in Hendersonville and spread out into the world.

I'll be one of the authors at the Blue Ridge Book Fest next weekend. Anyone interested in helping with the Human Flag project can find me there. I'll be the one with a big flag.

Oh … and books. I'll be selling books.

Bruce Benson is a Canadian writer and journalist who makes Hendersonville his home. Reach him at bensonusa@ hotmail.com.

<p>This was going to be a humorous column, as I made a recent trip back up Jeter Mountain to see my buddy Zeke. It's always fun up on Jeter Mountain. This time, Zeke's brother and neighbor Jebediah was there.</p><p>"He thinks he can travel through time," Zeke whispered to me once, as Jeb was speaking on the theory of evolution.</p><p>"I can," said Jeb, who overheard his brother. "Ever since I got glaucoma I can sit on my porch on my old rocking chair …" Here he paused to take some medicine for his condition. He struck a match, lit his pipe, inhaled deeply, coughed a little, held his breath, then exhaled the funny-smelling smoke.</p><p>Zeke took a snort of his jug in disgust.</p><p>"… And travel back and forth in time. Why, the things I could tell you …"</p><p>Jeb has regaled me with many tales of the past and future, tales I will relate later. But this column is an appeal for help. I need assistance with a project that is just too large to take on without the help of, eventually, millions of people.</p><p>Four years ago, I was hiking on the Appalachian Trail with my son, Tiberius. It was a coming-of-age trip for the 12-year-old boy (a coming-of-old-age trip for his father). As I watched him stomp up the mountain one morning, angry because "stupid dad" wouldn't let him sleep in, I got to wondering what kind of world he would inherit. A look at any newspaper or watching the news quickly shows how the world is screwed up in so many places and so many ways.</p><p>Hiking is conducive to thought, even for me, so I kept on thinking.</p><p>Yes, the world is screwed up in so many ways, but so many of the problems on our little blue dot are caused by our differences. And if you think about it, no matter a person's religion, or lack thereof; no matter a person's nationality, skin color or politics, these differences are nothing compared to what we have in common: We are human. We should have something to celebrate that fact, that commonality of being human. Why don't we?</p><p>That night I drew a template for a human flag, or Flag of Humanity. I can do some things well and some things poorly. Drawing falls into the latter category. My crude drawing was meant to represent an adult human passing the Earth to a child.</p><p>On my return to civilization, I took my stick-figure drawing to Design 1, a design team in Asheville, and four years later, with the help and advice of many others, the flag was finished. The final product is two sets of hands, child and adult, in silhouette to represent all the skin colors of people on Earth. The adult is handing the Earth to the child, who is reaching for it.</p><p>I ordered five flags made, and on my annual return trip to Canada where I work my summers as a commercial fisherman, I stopped in New York City and flew the flag in front of the United Nations building. Other than the flag representing the United Nations itself, the Flag of Humanity was the only flag flying that day.</p><p>The Flag of Humanity is unique in the world of flags. Every other flag on Earth represents, or celebrates, a difference: I am American, Canadian, Yugoslavian. I am a Rotarian, a Mason. I am from Henderson County. The Flag of Humanity represents all those things and more. It represents all of us, and so can be flown by every single person on Earth, no matter where, or what, or who they are.</p><p>I envision a world where children in one country can look at this flag flying over their nation, their town, their school, and know that other children in other countries, though they may have a different culture, language, religion and skin color, are looking at the same flag, celebrating the commonality of being human.</p><p>I made a small video about the flag. Search Youtube for The Flag of Humanity and you'll see my ugly mug. (Note: Two months after I posted it, four years after conception, someone else posted his own version of such a flag.)</p><p>I need help in promoting the Flag of Humanity. We can do it. In fact, I know we will. Jeb told me.</p><p>"It'll be all over the place, Bruce, don't worry about that. I've seen it flying over the pyramids of Egypt, the Eiffel Tower, Baghdad and the White House. It'll happen ... but you might not live to see it."</p><p>Jeb said that in the future, the raising of a flag to celebrate being human will become commonplace at everything from sporting events to international peace conferences. And he said it began in Hendersonville and spread out into the world.</p><p>I'll be one of the authors at the Blue Ridge Book Fest next weekend. Anyone interested in helping with the Human Flag project can find me there. I'll be the one with a big flag.</p><p>Oh … and books. I'll be selling books.</p><p>Bruce Benson is a Canadian writer and journalist who makes Hendersonville his home. Reach him at bensonusa@ hotmail.com.</p>